A Darryl Strawberry fan who can’t wait for June 1

Yesterday, the New York Mets announced the dates that they will retire Dwight Gooden and Darryl Strawberry’s numbers this upcoming season.  The date for Gooden’s number is April 14, and for Strawberry, it’s June 1. Both are well deserving. They were two of the Mets’ biggest and brightest stars in the 1980s decade, providing lots [...]

Bargain hunting: Best uses of the Mets’ remaining budget

Last week Andy Martino on SNY’s Mets Hot Stove reported that the Mets’ remaining free agent budget for this offseason is around $10 million. Considering the team’s needs of rotation, corner outfield and DH help, that is a tough number to navigate. But assuming that as the constraint, let’s take a look at who the [...]

A conversation about top prospect lists and the Mets’ minor league system

One of the mainstays of offseason articles is to create rankings and lists of top players in the minors.  My annual top 50 piece will be published by the end of the week, likely on Friday.  David Groveman is working on his, which will be posted before the start of the minor league season.  And [...]

Ben Middlebrooks and Mo Diarra give State a big lift in 83-76 win over Wake Forest

My first in-person basketball games came in the upper deck of Madison Square Garden, watching the Knicks. I remember being surprised at how often bigs, like Kareem Abdul Jabbar, didn’t cross half court. Then, when I went to NC State and started to get courtside seats, I was surprised with how physical the games were. [...]

Mets Continue Omar Minaya’s ‘Legacy’ With Dominican Graduation Ceremony

This was a real nice article on what the Mets do to help the IFAs they add to the system. Every year, the Mets’ Dominican Baseball Academy graduates players and staff that come through the program. In the last 18 years, more than 500 players have come through its ranks. And on Saturday, 164 players [...]

Filling out the rotation will be no easy task for the Mets

The top three spots in the 2024 rotation appear to be set.  After a 12-7 rookie season with a 2.98 ERA, the Marcel projections on Baseball-Reference pegs a year of regression for 30-year-old righty Kodai Senga in 2024, sliding down to a 9-7 record with a 3.52 ERA.  There appears to be no logical reason [...]

The Mets should consider Joey Votto to add to their collection of one-year deals

Perhaps the last thing the 2024 Mets need is to add a 40 year old, lefty-hitting 1B who hit .202 last year and put up a 0.0 fWAR. But this isn’t just any over the hill guy. Instead, this is Joey Votto and he should be available for a song. My interest in Votto would [...]

Thoughts on Luis Severino, Harrison Bader and Sean Manaea

On Thursday, I gave my overall take on the Mets' offseason so far. In the interim was this email conversation with ChrisF about that very subject. We started off with this question: So, what grade would you give the Mets this offseason and why? Chris: I’m giving the present state of the off season as [...]